Historic Preservation Commission Agenda and Packet 2020 09 21

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SUMMARY: The applicant is requesting: • The applicant is requesting approval of the Landmark application for the property at 633 La Farge Avenue and $5,000 Landmark Incentive Grant. • The applicant's request includes approval of an alteration certificate allowing the relocation of the structure currently located at 1201 Lincoln Avenue to the south portion of the property. No alterations to the house currently located at 633 La Farge Avenue are proposed. Staff recommendations: • Staff recommends approval of the landmark request including a $5,000 Landmark Grant. The property meets the requirements for age, significance, and integrity. • Staff recommends approval of the alteration certificate for the property at 633 La Farge Avenue allowing the relocation of the structure currently located at 1201 Lincoln Avenue to the south portion of the property. While the relocation of historic structures is generally not a preferred method of preservation, staff believes it is the only method of preserving 1201 Lincoln Avenue and is therefore allowable in this situation. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: Information from Bridget Bacon, Louisville Historical Museum This property has a common history with the properties at 722 Pine Street and 720 Pine Street located just to the west. All three properties have been in the same family for over 100 years, and for 633 La Farge, the ownership by one family continued for nearly 130 years. Part of the significance of the history of these properties is that they reflect the early settlement of Louisville by numerous German- speaking immigrants. Joseph and Agatha Stecker came to the United States from Austria in 1881, according to the federal census. These properties have made up more or less a family compound, with different family members living in different houses over time. The Stecker family first acquired at least Lot 1 of Block 7 in 1882. Boulder County property records indicate that the Steckers acquired Lot 5, which constitutes 720 1N1- S7 Pine, in 1889. It appears that they acquired 722 Pine, which is Lot 4, in 1909. Louisville directories first show a record for Joe "Sticker," a miner, in 1892. By 1896, he was both a miner and a dairyman. According to a written history prepared by the family, the Steckers kept cows at 633 La Farge "and sold milk, delivered in 5-pound lard pails." Agatha carried on their dairy business even after the death of Joe in 1904; the 1906 directory shows her still operating the dairy. Agatha moved next door to 722 Pine Street in 1916 while her daughter, Annie, continued to reside at 633 La Farge with her husband, Robert Kerr. Annie and Robert Kerr raised their daughters, Alma and Bertha, at 633 La Farge. Following their deaths, Alma continued to live in the house with her husband, Floyd Brennan until the time of her death in 1999. The property continued to be owned by descendants of the Stecker family until the current owners bought it in 2017. rs f � t to * fx x r